Child Therapy

Our independent practitioners work to provide a safe environment for children and their caregivers to discuss the issues which are causing problems in the lives of children. In child therapy, they work to build trust with children through play and seek to address the issues during these times. The work of counseling is to address the needs of the child as well as the family and offer solutions regarding stress/anxiety, trauma, depression, ADHD, as well as other issues. The therapist cannot treat a child of divorce or separation without a copy of divorce or custody paperwork for children of living in single parent for blended families. Therapy is the focus of the therapists of Turning Point Counseling, not going to court or involving legal disputes. None of these therapists offer forensic counseling.

Janet most often works with children from a Child Centered Play Therapy perspective. Child Centered Play Therapy is a method used to help children communicate their inner experiences through the use of toys and play. Nondirective play therapy, also called child- centered play therapy, is a philosophy based on the belief that children have the internal drive to achieve wellness and therefor does not focus on the idea that the child is “sick” or “bad” but that they need help functioning within their environment.

Amy finds that children’s presenting symptoms are often an outcry for help when feeling overwhelmed, frightened, or confused. Therapy focuses on helping children manage and express big emotions in healthier ways, while fostering security and stability in the child’s family relationships. Amy utilizes verbal and nonverbal play therapy techniques to meet children at their developmental level while exploring their world.

Rosie believes that children present symptoms of frustrating or confusing behavior when there is an unmet need in their environment. Rosie’s goal in working with children and their families is to discover the function of the behavior (what is the unmet need?) and develop healthy behaviors to get that need met in an appropriate way. Rosie believes this is the most important step in creating communication and relationships between children and adults which are supportive, bonded, and loving. Rosie has experience working with high risk children and adolescents, as well as their families and members of their social environment, as a Therapeutic Behavioral Services Clinician and Functional Integrative Therapy Clinician.

Patrick considers therapy with children focuses on improving coping skills, managing emotions more effectively, improving relationships with parents and/or siblings. Sometimes therapy focuses on adjustments in family life such as divorce, adoption, separation from parents, grief, and developmental challenges.

Jonathan describes that many times, children’s symptoms seem strange or indirect. For example, children who present with outbursts of anger may really be depressed or anxious, but are unable to express or process these emotions directly through language due to their natural state of brain development. Much of their behavior is a response to needs they perceive faintly, but cannot fully describe. Achieving change in children requires the effort of child, parents, and therapist working together to create a safe environment to shine a light on the underlying issue, and to generate solutions that contribute to problem resolution.

Kyle finds that children thrive with structure and stability. Anything that disrupts this framework can result in a child experiencing many behavioral issues, such as anger, outbursts, tantrums, anxiety, depression, inability to express emotions, etc. Therefore, therapy becomes a tool for the child and family to explore coping skills to work through their situation. Kyle utilizes play therapy to provide a safe and kid-friendly environment to work through the difficulties that life shakes up our desired stability with.

Play is a child’s language, the toys in the playroom are the words a child uses to express their inner experiences and how they perceive and interpret the world. Through play, children speak to the therapist and communicate their inner thoughts and feelings. During play therapy sessions, themes emerge in the child’s play, giving the therapist insight into the child’s experiences, thoughts, feelings, and interpretations of their world. The process of play becomes the vehicle for healing change. If you are experiencing the following problems, you might consider play therapy.